Antonio Gomes Leal

Antonio Duarte Gomes Leal

António Duarte Gomes Leal (born June 6, 1848 in Lisbon , Portugal , † January 29, 1921 in Lisbon) was a Portuguese poet and journalist . He is also known as the "Portuguese Baudelaire " .

Life

Gomes Leal was born out of wedlock to an employee in Lisbon in 1848 and grew up with a mother and sister without a father. He attended literature courses at the University of Lisbon , but dropped out without a degree. Initially employed as a clerk for a notary in Lisbon, he switched to journalism and worked for various newspapers. In 1875 he published his first book, the volume of poetry "Claridades do Sul", which was written due to the death of his beloved sister. In 1910 he converted to the Catholic faith . After his mother's death, he lived in homelessness and on park benches, as he was no longer able to work as a journalist due to his alcoholism . He later received a small pension from the Portuguese state, which kept him afloat until his death.

He died on January 29, 1921 as a result of his severe alcoholism in Lisbon.

His work has not yet been translated into German.

meaning

Gomes Leal is also called the Portuguese Baudelaire . He was the first lyric poet and author in Portugal to deal with decadence , occultism and satanism in his literature. Baudelaire was his role model. His poems are of ultra- romanticism , parnaism and z. Sometimes symbolism was also shaped. Thus, about angels , demons , the devil and the depravity of the world his characters. He paints a picture of the downfall of civilization and the earth, for which he primarily blames science.

The Portuguese writer Fernando Pessoa (1888–1935) expressly describes him as one of his role models and even dedicated his own biographical poem to him in his work Mensagem .

His most famous work is the volume of poetry The Antichrist (O Anti-cristo) , in which he spreads a doomsday mood in gloomy images.

Work (selection)

Claridade do Sul , 1875, poetry.
A fome de Camoes , 1880, poetry.
Historia de Jesus , 1883, poetry.
O anti-cristo , 1886, poetry.
Fim de um mundo , 1900, poetry.
A senhora de melancholia , 1910, poetry.

Web links

personal data
SURNAME	Gomes Leal, António
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Gomes Leal, Antonio Duarte; Leal, Gomes
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	Portuguese poet and journalist
DATE OF BIRTH	June 6, 1848
PLACE OF BIRTH	Lisbon , Portugal
DATE OF DEATH	January 29, 1921
Place of death	Lisbon , Portugal